Darkman

Darkman
Darkman
	Theatrical release poster by John Alvin
Directed by	Sam Raimi
Screenplay by	Chuck Pfarrer; Sam Raimi; Ivan Raimi; Daniel Goldin; Joshua Goldin;
Story by	Sam Raimi
Produced by	Robert Tapert
Starring	Liam Neeson; Frances McDormand; Colin Friels; Larry Drake;
Cinematography	Bill Pope
Edited by	Bud S. Smith; David Stiven;
Music by	Danny Elfman
Production; companies	Universal Pictures; Renaissance Pictures; Darkman Productions;
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date	August 24, 1990;
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$14 million
Box office	$48.8 million

Darkman is a 1990 American superhero film^[5] directed and co-written by Sam Raimi. The film stars Liam Neeson as scientist Peyton Westlake, who is brutally attacked, disfigured, and left for dead by ruthless mobster Robert Durant (Larry Drake), after his girlfriend, attorney Julie Hastings (Frances McDormand), runs afoul of corrupt developer Louis Strack Jr. (Colin Friels). An experimental treatment gives Westlake super-human strength and resilience, with the unintended side-effect of rendering him mentally unstable and borderline psychotic. Consumed with vengeance, Westlake continues his research with the new goal of hunting down those who disfigured him.

Based on a short story Raimi wrote that paid homage to Universal's horror films of the 1930s, and influenced by his desire to adapt The Shadow, Raimi struck a deal with Universal Studios to make his first Hollywood studio film. It was produced by Robert Tapert, and was written by Raimi, his brother Ivan, Chuck Pfarrer, and brothers Daniel and Joshua Goldin. Makeup effects artist Tony Gardner designed and created the elaborate makeup effects required to turn Neeson into Darkman.

Neeson's first action film in the main role, Darkman received generally positive reviews by critics and was commercially successful, grossing $48 million, above its $14 million budget. This financial success spawned two direct-to-video sequels (sans Neeson or Raimi) – The Return of Durant and Die Darkman Die – as well as adaptations including novels, comic books, and video games.

^ ^a ^b ^c "DARKMAN (1990)". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
^ "DARKMAN (15)". British Board of Film Classification. November 7, 1990. Archived from the original on August 27, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
^ "'Darkman' Director Sam Raimi is Focusing on More Than Terror". The Morning Call. August 24, 1990.
^ Cite error: The named reference mojo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Parker, Ryan (August 20, 2020). "'Darkman' Turns 30: Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand and More Remember the Arduous Making of Sam Raimi's Influential Superhero Film". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved November 28, 2021.

[AFI-1] "DARKMAN (1990)". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 3, 2023.

[2] "DARKMAN (15)". British Board of Film Classification. November 7, 1990. Archived from the original on August 27, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.

[3] "'Darkman' Director Sam Raimi is Focusing on More Than Terror". The Morning Call. August 24, 1990.

[mojo-4] Cite error: The named reference mojo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[THR-5] Parker, Ryan (August 20, 2020). "'Darkman' Turns 30: Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand and More Remember the Arduous Making of Sam Raimi's Influential Superhero Film". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved November 28, 2021.

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